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The UCI Track Champions League concluded this past weekend with the final two rounds taking place at London’s Lee Valley Velopark on Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of December.

Four Irish riders took on the five-round series. Lara Gillespie, Mia Griffin, Erin Creighton and Lucy Bénézet Minns all took part in the Endurance league.

Round One took place a setting familiar to three of the four Irish representatives. Having made the trip to Paris for the 2024 Olympics, the riders made their return to the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines velodrome on Saturday the 23rd of November.

The Irish contingent hit the ground running on the first day of competition, with Mia Griffin bagging a third place in the Scratch, and Lara Gillespie taking eighth in the opening race. Strong performances from Erin Crieghton and Lucy Bénézet Minns in their debut race in the series taking 11th and 15th respectively.

The quartet followed their strong performance in the first race of the competition with another solid showing in the Elimination race later that evening. The eventual series overall winner, Great Britain’s Kate Archibald took the overall win, with Lara Gillespie finishing best of the Irish in fourth. Mia Griffin and Erin Creighton both bagged more points finishing in 13th and 15th respectively, while Lucy Bénézet Minns came in 17th.

Riders headed to Apeldoorn for Rounds 2 and 3. Round 2 took place on 29th of November, with Round 3 following on 30th of November.

Griffin continued her strong form in the Scratch with another third-place finish behind Archibald and Canda’s Sarah Van Dam. Creighton pulled in more valuable points with a 7th place finish, as Gillespie came in 11th with Bénézet Minns following in 17th.

Lara Gillespie put in another very strong performance in the Elimination race that saw her take yet another third-place finish. Griffin scored more points with a 14th place finish, as Bénézet Minns and Creighton took 17th and 18th respectively.

Riders remained in the Omnisport Apeldoorn for Round 3 on Saturday the 30th of November. The scratch event saw another immense performance from Lara Gillespie and Mia Griffin, as Gillespie narrowly missed out on a win to Czech rider Petra Sevcikova finishing second, with Griffin getting another top 10 finishing eighth. In a race that saw several of the favourites drop points, Bénézet Minns and Creighton took 16th and 17th.

Griffin was top Irish finisher in the Elimination later that evening with an 11th place, as Gillespie took 13th and Bénézet Minns and Creighton replicated their earlier finish in 16th and 17th respectively.

Round 4 took place at the Lee Valley Velopark in London on Friday, 6th of December. In what was as close to a home race as the Irish riders would get, a big Irish support was present and vocal.

Griffin took another top 10 in the opening Scratch race, finishing ninth. Gillespie also took a point finishing 15th, with Bénézet Minns and Creighton taking 16th and 16th respectively.

Having won the Elimination race in London in the 2023 series, Lara Gillespie was marked as one to watch, and she delivered another win. Creighton notched more points finishing 14th, with Bénézet Minns taking 16th and Mia Griffin finishing 18th.

The series finale in London saw Gillespie remain in the chase for an overall podium place. A very strong showing in the Scratch race and capitalising on a rare slip up from nearest rival Sarah Van Dam, Gillespie bagged herself third place in the race and jumped into third in the overall standings. Mia Griffin continued her consistent point scoring run with a 12th place finish, followed by Erin Creighton in 15th and Lucy Bénézet Minns in 16th.

Gillespie got the business done in the final race of the series, taking another third-place finish in the Elimination and solidifying her third place overall in the standings. Mia Griffin’s 12th place in the final race was enough to ensure she remained in the top 10 in the overall standings. Lucy Bénézet Minns and Erin Creighton took 17th and 18th place in the final race. Their results meant a 17th and 18th place overall finish for Creighton and Bénézet Minns respectively.